A Magical Kakera
by emilyjennyjess
Summary: Ushiromiya Battler is now faced with a challenge: defeating a new kakera. With Virgilia and the HP crew on his side, some certain witches and Voldemort as his enemy, what will happen? Spoilers for Chiru. HP/Umineko crossover. BaBeato pairing.
1. Chapter 1

_Before I start, I would like to warn you about __**major**__ spoilers for Umineko Chiru. If you haven't read at least the summary, then I wouldn't recommend spoiling yourself._

_And Umineko and Harry Potter don't belong to me._

Chapter 1: Awakening

Professor Dumbledore was, by all standards, considered an odd man. But, as he sat across from a silver-haired lady in Victorian dress, he, like all humans, felt a pang of incredulity. Who was she? How had she suddenly appeared in his office when it was impossible to Apparate in or out of Hogwarts? And why had her eyes not opened the entire time she sat across from him?

Despite his wonderings, Dumbledore managed his usual affable smile, and ushered her to a seat. With a small curtsey, she took it.

"And who may I have the pleasure of entertaining this evening?"

"Pardon me for my unexplained appearance. My name is Lady Virgilia, and I had an interest in your seat of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, which, I heard, was on offer this year."

"Ah, I see. Do you have any credentials, Lady Virgilia?"

"I'm afraid I have none. You see, I was magically schooled in Japan, and originally served as a servant to a high-ranking witch. I do, however, have my certificate of graduation."

"That shall do." As Dumbledore scanned a sheet of parchment she handed him, he noticed some peculiarities. "With your academic excellence, it seems you could have done better than a mere servant."

"Rather, the witch family I served had a penchant for intelligent, powerful servants. It was a requirement that we should be able to defend the noble family from any intruders. Therefore, I was obliged to have these academic achievements."

Dumbledore nodded slowly, eyes twinkling. The witch across from him sent a small, answering smile.

"However, Lady Virgilia, I must explain one factor of this occupation to you. It almost seems as though the seat of Defence Against the Dark Arts is cursed."

Virgilia nodded. "I am well aware of it. In any situation, I am not likely to keep this place for another year. I have other obligations."

"I see. And… is there anything else you would like to ask?"

"Well… I would like to recommend a new student. He is surprisingly bright and capable at magic, even though he strongly refuses to accept it. His name… is Battler Ushiromiya."

* * *

Battler jolted up in bed, panting. What…

Wait… what? Why was he…? His room? Just a moment…

His last memory… a lady in pink, a scowl on her face. _'So then, Battler? You want to be known as Endless Sorcerer? Well, I can't have that. Not until you've proven yourself worthy of the title… Don't you agree, Bern-chan?' _Her sneering face, and that of the girl's next to her. And then there was pain. Excruciating pain. And the other girl… her name… Bernkastel? Her voice was echoing throughout his head. _'Well, Battler. Here is your challenge. Try escaping from this kakera, and we might just consider you a sorcerer. And then, you might have a chance at beating Furudo-chan's theory. Of coouuurrse, if you can't manage it, you be stuck in this world foreverrr.' _

Her giggles, the lady in pink's chortles, and another girl with two long pigtails…

And Beatrice…

_That_ memory was crystal clear. Reviving from his death, her empty shell in his arms. His cries… finally extracting the blade of red from himself, only to be stopped by these witches…

What had happened during these games of death… he could remember them all. It was a game, only between him and Beato! These witches, he would deny them! He would stop this endless cycle!

If only he could find out what was happening…

"Onii-chan! Onii-chan! Wake up sleepyhead!" Battler openly gasped as Ange flew into his arms, her red hair flying loosely everywhere.

"Ange?! You're… alive?" Ange looked up at him, a puzzled pout on her face.

"Onii-chan, what do you mean?"

"Che. Little brat must've had a bad dream again last night. C'mon, you're fifteen. Time to grow out of being afraid of these little nightmares."

'_I'm… fifteen?'_ Battler wondered. What on earth were these witches trying to achieve by making him younger by three years, and making Ange older by the same amount? What twisted game were they up to? More importantly, what was the date?

"Now then, Rudolf, don't go bullying poor Battler-kun." Kyrie. How many times had he seen her drenched in blood, her last expression of horror etched on her face?

"Gah… Kyrie, it was only in fun…"

"Battler-onii-chan! Hurry! Hurry! You have to get up and cook pancakes for me! You promised!"

Perhaps… this kakera… wasn't so bad after all.

* * *

Harry Potter sighed a little as he stumbled out of bed. He had a pretty strange dream the night before, though he couldn't really remember exactly what it was about… just the general feeling of it. Ever since the Triwizard tournament… he had been having such _bizarre_ dreams. Flashes of blue and red raced past his memory of the dream.

Padding to the bathroom, he was stopped dead in his tracks by…

"Who… who on earth are you?" A woman with long, silvery hair smiled benignly over him. Her dress was a flowing black, with white ruffles on the sleeves and front.

"Why, happy birthday, Harry Potter. Professor Dumbledore sent me to guide you to Diagon Alley. I hope you have packed?"

Harry coloured. The truth was, Professor Dumbledore had sent him owl post saying that he was going to send someone to pick up Harry from the Dursleys, but a date had never been specified. Harry had barely packed up any of his things.

"Er… well…" Virgilia only nodded graciously.

"Then, Harry, could you please lead me to your room? It should only take a simple spell." Gulping slightly, Harry nodded.

His room was an adolescent mess. However, Virgilia seemed unfazed, or perhaps, she couldn't see it. The entire time they had been talking, Virgilia had not opened her eyes once. Waving her wand, Harry's room was restored to an angular neatness, and all his necessary belongings were tidily stowed in his suitcase. Hedwig's cage was gently dropped onto the zipped suitcase, a neatly written note was stuck to the door and everything was ready for their journey to Diagon Alley.

"Now then, Harry, take my arm. We will use apparition."

Harry nodded, and a familiar sensation engulfed them both. When he opened his eyes again, he was standing in front of the Leaky Cauldron, and the sunrise illuminating the horizon.

"Now then, Harry, you'll find that a room has already been booked for you. If there is anything you need, don't hesitate to tell the innkeeper. I now have other duties to attend to."

"W-wait! I still don't know who you are!"

The witch paused a little, before replying. "My name is Virgilia, and I am your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher." With that, she gave him a final curtsey and disappeared, not with a pop, but in a flutter of… _golden butterflies_?

As Harry settled into his room, he slumped onto the bed with a sigh. This was happening all _too_ quickly.

* * *

July 31, 1995. The date itself seemed to be strange. He had been sent into the future? Battler pondered upon the peculiarities of this kakera. Through passing conversation between his father and stepmother, he found out that Rokkenjima had been sold a month ago, Jessica and her family had moved nearby, and Kinzo was, apparently, an affable gentleman, certainly not unhinged or practicing any weird black magic. He also died peacefully, and respectably, from old age. Another change was that Kinzo had already written his will, preventing any weird murders from happening. However, Kyrie mentioned that Kinzo's hobby of investigating Chinese medicine had caused his study to smell like strange, sickly-sweet herbal extracts. Evidently, there were some things which couldn't change.

"Battler-kun, is anything the matter? You seem somewhat… distant." Kyrie's voice broke into his thoughts.

Battler attempted his usual grin. "Ihihi… of course I feel terrible. Jessica's boobs are too close to us, now that she's moved so near. My hands are gonna itch every time I pass by her apartment~! …Oww! Dad!"

"Not in front of your little sister, brat."

"Eh? Why are onii-chan's hands itchy?" Ange's innocent, inquiring voice piped up. "If Ange scratches them, will onii feel better?"

"Ahaha… Ange… I'm pretty sure that won't help." Battler laughed sheepishly.

Ange pouted slightly. "Why? If you're itchy, you scratch."

"Ah… Ange-chan, Battler-kun was joking." Kyrie attempted to clear the awkward atmosphere.

At that point, the doorbell rung.

"Eh? Who could it be, this early in the morning? Maybe Natsuhi-san needs to borrow something?"

The door opened to reveal… an eccentric looking old man with a long flowing beard. And behind him…

"VIRGILIA?!"

_Yay! End of first chapter! _

_Okay, I had this plot bunny in my head already, and someone in the Umineko Kink meme suggested a HP/Umineko crossover (of course, I won't be including anything... kink memey). Seeing what a popular reaction there was, I decided not to wait until the end of Umineko, unlike what I previously had planned, to write this. I won't update this until I finish the next chapter of 'When they meet' so… you might have to wait a while…_

_Please review!_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Realisation

"VIRGILIA!" Battler flew up from his seat, so shocked that he didn't even spare a thought for the elderly man beside her. He tried rubbing his eyes to check if he was just seeing things. However, it didn't work. Virgilia was still there, the next time he checked.

"Eh? Battler onii-chan, is that a friend of yours? She looks nice…" Ange gazed innocently and trustingly at the silver-haired witch in front of her. She looked so familiar, as though she had met her in a previous life.

"Battler-kun, what kind of unsavoury crowd have you been hanging out with?" Rudolf asked of his son, who was currently staring fish-eyed at the witch. His practical words broke into the surprise-induced state of shock Battler was in. After blinking a few times in an attempt to get a hold of himself, he steeled his nerves (reminding himself that he was a proud _Ushiromiya_, and the Ushiromiya family never fainted due to witches appearing in front of them) and finally spoke.

"Virgilia… what on _earth_ are you doing here?"

"Ah, Battler-kun. It has been a long time. How are you?"

"Quit the formalities, Virgilia. Exactly why the hell am I here, as a piece on whatever idiotic game board this is, and not acting as a player? What twisted thing did Bern or Lambda do? Answer me!" An enigmatic smile was Virgilia's only reply.

"Peace, child. How about we sit down here and share some delicious tea? Your nerves must be frayed from the shock of adapting to a new kakera. However, you have managed reasonably well, regarding the fact that you have only spent a few earthly hours here." Virgilia held out the palm of her hand, and with a slight golden sparkle, a tea set appeared. The man next to her, who Battler had not noticed up until now, chuckled at the sight.

"Now, now Madam, you must remember that there are Muggles in the direct vicinity. I am sure they are wondering how you managed to succeed in such a miraculous feat." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at the spectacle of Rudolf and Kyrie's shocked faces. The two quickly recovered from their shock, however, and Kyrie's mind was already whirring. Virgilia glanced upwards from her tea-making (the tray hovering, unsupported in the air), and spoke.

"Ah, Kyrie-san, would you like to say something? Perhaps you are turning the chessboard even now."

The ever-practical Kyrie didn't look at all shocked by Virgilia's recognition of the way she thought. As Virgilia had predicted, she really had been doing that. So far, the opponent's goal seemed to be to shock them. However, the few words they had spoken had shown great familiarity, closer than just mere acquaintances of Battler. Turning the chessboard over, why on earth would anyone go to such lengths to show a magical illusion as to dress up in Victorian clothing and turn up on their doorstep? And why was Battler playing along? At that point, Kyrie's deductions reached an abrupt halt. None of what she had observed made sense. With a sigh, she addressed the silver-haired witch.

"I don't understand what's going on, but the least I can observe, Battler's rather close to you, right?" Virgilia nodded, as though she had been expecting that answer.

"We should first sit down, and discuss this in a sensible manner. Some tea, perhaps?" A fragile-looking golden teacup hovered directly in front of Rudolf's face, causing him to jolt a little in surprise.

* * *

"V-Virgilia, what on earth is the meaning of this?!" Battler roared, shaking the piece of parchment in front of the witch's face, as though it contained a personal insult. "Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardary?! What the hell is this crap? Are you just messing with me?!" A teacup, which had been on his lap before he had flown up in such a fury, fell to the floor, but before it could crack, turned into a golden butterfly and returned to Virgilia's palm.

Both Virgilia and the old man gave him one of these _annoyingly_ patient, belittling smiles. The man stood up gracefully, speaking up for the first time since his comment about 'Muggles'.

"I assure you, Ushiromiya-san, this is no trick. I myself, Albus Dumbledore, am the principal of this extraordinary school." Dumbledore spoke surprisingly good Japanese for a foreigner. Pausing for a moment to digest this statement, Battler sat back down, legs crossed.

"How the heck am I supposed to believe you?"

"There is an entire magical community hidden away from the eyes of the general public. As soon as we can, I must arrange an escort to show you through the main shopping district."

"Wait." Kyrie spoke up. "Even if this 'magical community' you speak of did exist, how come we've never heard of it? Logically, the welfare officers would come pester us if they discovered that we could not answer to Battler's whereabouts. Wouldn't there be a huge uproar if it was discovered that a few hundred children had gone to a 'boarding school' which had never been heard of? How come the government has never noticed? If we turn the chessboard around, your motives seem to be similar to those of kidnappers. Lure a child away with 'magic,' and send them to a place no one can be sure exists."

Virgilia held up a hand to silence her. "If we must use logic to debate this, I suppose I shall help you settle the matter. Your theory is like Schrödinger's cat box. Your truth, if I do not mince it, is that we are trying to kidnap your son. Our truth is that we are trying to send your son to our highly reputable school. Therefore, to end this debate, we will peer inside of the cat box. What you believe is that the cat is dead. What we believe is that it is alive."

"How would you manage that?"

"Simple." Virgilia smiled. "Take my hand."

Warily, Kyrie stretched out her hand towards Virgilia's. Looking at Battler, Rudolf and Ange (the latter had been forgotten) she seemed to consider for a moment, before offering her other hand to them.

"It wouldn't be overly magically draining to take you three along with me as well." As she was speaking, her fingers somehow managed to connect with the others' outstretched hands. Nodding at Dumbledore, she asked of him to do the honours.

"Certainly shall, Madam Virgilia." Turning to address Battler's family, he continued. "We will be using Apparition to reach our destination, so do not feel alarmed at any uncomfortable sensations you may experience." Kyrie looked chary at the last statement, glancing at the old man's glittering eyes behind the spectacles. As wise as Dumbledore looked, Kyrie felt as though she couldn't very well trust him.

* * *

Normal magical courtesy demanded that witches and wizards Apparate a good distance away from Diagon Alley, such as just outside the Leaky Cauldron. This was to prevent any accidents, and in times of strife, offered a little security. In fact, Harry was sure Diagon Alley had the same spell cast on it as for Hogwarts. He was therefore, reasonably surprised to see an odd ensemble appear right in front of his eyes. He was also surprised after recognising a few people in the group.

"Oh, Harry Potter! Pleased to meet you again. I'm sure you recognise Professor Dumbledore." Virgilia smiled and curtseyed. "The other four people are of a muggle family of whom their son will be attending Hogwarts." At that she paused, and addressed the gathered group (four of whom who seemed to be in a state of shock) in Japanese.

"As the magical community around these parts speak mainly in English, a temporary language charm will be cast. Do any of you have questions?" As the four in front of her shook their heads dumbly, Virgilia waved her wand, four golden butterflies appearing in her hand as brooch-like objects. "While you wear this, everything you say in Japanese will be translated and rendered into English to the listener. Everything anyone else says will be rendered into Japanese."

Dumbledore smiled. "Really, Virgilia, I wonder if this boy will have the same fascination of golden butterflies as you do." Turning to Harry, he continued. "I was wishing for you to guide this boy around Diagon Alley. I've heard that there is a need for boys of a similar age to associate in preparation for forming new friendships at a new school."

* * *

The hustle and bustle of Diagon Alley reached the ears of yet another person. Lucifer, the embodiment of pride itself, felt that her ruling passion had experienced a huge denting. Cursing Ronove with all her might, she walked on. Why was she cursing Ronove? Because that _stupid_ butler had to make _everything_ he offered her sound like a favour, condescension on his behalf. She had agreed to stoop as low as to become a _human_ piece in this particular kakera, for her Battler-sama's sake, but his offer of changing the colour of her eyes… he used _that_ tone, the tone that made her feel as if she was about to ask for a petty little thing! The nerve of him! However, she was now regretting refusing him due to the many curious stares she received, since awakening in the queer old bar. The 'Leaky Cauldron' it was called. Upon attempting to exit to where she felt a pulse of magical power, a brick wall barred her way. How much more insulting could this day get? Glaring at the wall, with a look which would normally have crumbled it to dust, but instead caused it to calmly and exasperatingly open and reveal a street filled with quaint shops, Lucifer growled, lips pulled back into a snarl.

Had Ronove arranged this entire discourteous expedition?

Pulling a letter from a pocket of her cloak (thankfully, she hadn't woken up wearing her uniform), she reread the contents. Addressed to Lucy Fay, her alias for the time being, it was an invitation to the Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Apparently, Madam Virgilia had arranged for Battler-sama to be sent into this exclusive school, while she would also attend for his protection. How she could possibly protect him was beyond her, having lost all her powers as a Stake of Purgatory in this kakera. Ronove had vaguely mentioned something about her becoming a medium to summon other furniture. How crude! A _medium_ to summon _other_ furniture?! She was one of the most powerful demons, the eldest Stake of Purgatory, and there that stupid butler was, lowering her status to one of a _medium_!

Sighing in exasperation, she examined the lower portions of the letter. Ronove had arranged for her an account in the wizarding bank, and the key had been in her pocket when she awoke. Perhaps she could shop around a little, while she waited for something to happen.

But she didn't need to wait for long. As she made her way towards the Gringrotts Bank, a familiar crop of turquoise curly hair made itself visible to her.

'_No! Not 410!'_

Ducking to avoid detection by the keen eyes (and nose, though the bunny ears, or lack thereof, were currently in doubt), Lucifer knew her effort was futile.

"Hey! If it isn't my favourite stake nee-chan, nyeh!"

She ran, weaving through noisy young children, middle-aged mothers and an amiable-looking gentleman, who all stared at her red eyes as she flew past.

Siesta 410 shrugged as she watched Lucifer's retreating back. "Oh well, we can't all be friends. What's the matter, 45? You look as though you've seen a monster, nihi."

Another familiar head pooped out of the crowd. "A-ahh… w-well… I feel rather self-conscious about m-my hair right now… A-ah… shouldn't we continue on with our orders? We might get scolded if we don't…"

"Nihi, don't worry. Even though we've only got the form and power of normal humans here, there are still ways we can track these things down, nyeh."

"I-I hope so…" Siesta 45 cowered behind 410, covering her pink pigtails with her hands.

* * *

With the language charm in place, Battler fell to conversing with his guide. So far, all they had talked about was what Hogwarts was like, magic, and the various shops. Now, Battler burst out with an unexpected question.

"What's your family like?"

Starting, Harry spun around. Where had Battler pulled that question from? Grimacing, with a slight shrug and ever-so-slight edge to her voice, he replied. "My parents were killed. I live with my muggle aunt and uncle." This time, it was Battler's turn to start.

"I-I'm sorry. I had no idea. Y'see, my real mother's dead as well, so…"

Harry shrugged again, this time with a slight smile. "I guess the woman you were with was your stepmother? Do you get along well with her?"

"Well enough. It's my old man I don't get along well with. The geezer married Kyrie almost as soon as my mother's coffin was out of the house, so I never really forgave him. I left my household to live with my grandparents but they died, one after the other, so I've come back to this mad ol' family."

At that point, Battler was interrupted by a dark-haired whirlwind attempting to fly past him. _Key_ word being attempting. Unfortunately for both him and the whirlwind, whoever it was ended up tripping on a raised cobblestone, crashing into him and knocking all his wind out in the meantime. Dazed and disoriented, his eyes met a pair of familiar ruby ones.

_Lucifer?!_

Indeed, it was the embodiment of Pride herself. Lucifer watched through a haze of emotions varying from embarrassed rage to relief the she had finally found her master, as Battler gently pushed her off him and pulled them both into a standing position. After a brief moment of hesitation, she gave Battler a slight, apologetic bow. "Forgive me, Battler-sama, for behaving in such an unbecoming way before your presence." She now spoke in slightly accented Japanese, and Battler couldn't remember if it was her ordinary accent, and not a product of the language-charm-brooch, if she was speaking in English.

Battler laughed nervously, scratching his head. "Haha… it was no problem. I really didn't expect you… uh… to be here." It had probably been translated into English, by the way Lucifer blinked in surprise at his words. She didn't know about the language charm, did she?

"Do you know her?" Harry's voice broke into the subtly _awkward_ silence which had settled in between the two, alerting them to his presence. Lucifer immediately turned towards him, giving him a bow.

"My name is Lucy Fay, childhood friend of Battler Ushiromiya. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Battler couldn't help smiling, first at the unoriginal alias, and then at Lucifer's overly formal way of speaking.

As Lucifer raised cold eyes to scan her new associate's face, Harry couldn't help feeling unnerved by the strange colour of her irises. The only person he had _ever_ before seen with red eyes…

Was Voldemort.

At that time, Virgilia reappeared, leading Rudolf, Kyrie and Ange back. Ange was cheerfully sucking on one of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, a packet of which the kind witch had bought for her. The latter didn't seem much fazed by Lucifer's sudden appearance, only nodding to her once and inquiring whether Ronove had arranged everything correctly, to which Lucifer answered in the affirmative.

Looking at Battler's confused expression, he knew his own face mirrored the former's. Why on earth were all these random strangers so familiar with one another? Was this more than one giant coincidence? However, he didn't have much time to ponder, as Professor Virgilia's attention turned towards him. "Oh, Harry Potter. You must be confused at what is happening. Lucy Fay comes from a prestigious magical family, where I worked as a servant. Her father, Ronove, wanted to send her to one of the best magical schools and Hogwarts was recommended to him. I was leaving the household to look for other work, so he requested that I become the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and keep an eye on Lucy in the meantime. I hope this clears matters for you."

It certainly did, Harry thought uneasily. He could easily draw a parallel between this story and another one much closer to home. However, Snape had never been the Malfoys' servant and it was hard to match him up to this eternally smiling witch. At this point, he noticed Lucy staring at him, not suspiciously, but curiously. As soon as she realised he noticed her, she quickly averted her gaze.

No one had told Lucifer that the scrawny, weak-looking boy in front of her was Harry Potter, whispered even in the world of demons to be a strange child. The 'Chosen One,' they called him, and the greatest witches could not understand his natural anti-magic barrier, rumoured to have been created by his mother's love for him. The strangest thing was that, in critical moments, the barrier occasionally rose to a strength which could rival even Battler-sama's endless nine. If Battler had buried all the digits with nines, Harry Potter's power continued to rise and fall. Truly, love's power was fickle. Fickle like her previous master. Yet, strangely enough, her previous master's love… it had endured death…

"Hey, big-ass! Snap out of it! We're going!"

_Oh… God… I don't know what to say… except… I'M SORRY!!! I didn't mean to take so long to update, but I was just so busy!_

_Oh well, since everyone's been introduced to everyone (at least the people that matter), this story can move a little faster. Again, I'm so sorry! *dodges onslaught of stakes and siestas*_


End file.
